Mohan Lal Bhelpuri Wala

By: Shagun Nayar

We, Delhiites have always had a soft corner for lip-smacking street food. Walking on the roads of this beautiful city, you will encounter numerous stalls serving the best of street food that Delhi has to offer. Tired college students after lectures, Children on Sunday evenings and the Diet cheaters after a tiring walk or a session at the gym are bound to find themselves being drawn to their favourite street food, if it’s even possible to pick one. I, for one can never choose.

However, a good plate of Bhelpuri always finds its way to my top 3 and so, I went on a mini Bhelpuri expedition to find my favourite plate of Bhelpuri in north campus. To my pleasant surprise, the stall/vendor serving the best is situated right in-between Hindu College and the Delhi School of Economics. It has a prime location as it always swamped with college students at any given time of the day. You are bound to bump into students walking in and out of their college gates with a plate of Mohan Bhaiya’s famous Bhelpuri in their hands.

Rumour has it that Mohan Bhaiya used to be lab assistant in one of north campus colleges but after careful consideration and the realisation that with his special green chutney and fresh produce he could serve the best Bhelpuri at campus without question, he decided to part ways with his job as a day assistant and started his own little business venture thereby earning more money and living a more relaxed life.

Situated on the same path as the bus stop stand for Hindu College, Delhi School of Economics and St. Stephan’s, students usually sit on the bus stop bench blabbering about their lectures, crushes & upcoming events while eating this divine mixture of puffed rice, peanuts, papri, green chillies, onions, boiled potatoes, coriander, tomato topped over with the special green chutney that makes Mohan Bhaiya’s Bhelpuri the best in campus. He also caters to the other lot by serving his delicious version of Sevpuri topped over with tiny pieces of red apple and a sweet red chutney which is equally delicious and popular.

Another reason for his popularity among numerous other vendors serving the exact street food item is that he makes it fresh from scratch finishing off his delicious rendition of the same by adding freshly chopped coriander and a squeeze of lemon juice to give it that extra freshness an zing. So, the next time you’re craving a plate of spicy, salty Bhelpuri make sure you look up Mohan Bhaiya for he will not disappoint.

Anubhav Sapra is an avid foodie! He is a Founder but proudly calls himself a Foodie-in-chief at Delhi Food Walks. He is also a street-food and Indian regional cuisine connoisseur and loves to write about street-food.